Chapter 23
GABRIEL HANDED HIShorse’s reins to a waiting footman and made his way to the tent that had been set up for refreshments. He removed his top hat, wiped the perspiration from his brow with the sleeve of his wool riding coat, and then pushed his damp hair away from his face. Even with all the energy exerted, the day’s hunt had been relatively uneventful. Most of the men abandoned the task early on in favor of port and leisurely conversation, and Bauer was one of them.
Knowing that Bauer would be immersed in conversation for most of the morning, Gabriel kept to his unfruitful task of tracking a hare, but all the while he watched and waited for his opportunity to finally engage the man one-on-one. When he saw his chance to speak to Bauer as the man stood alone near one of the tables beneath a canopy of trees, Gabriel took it.
“We’ve not been formally introduced,” Gabriel said as he approached.
Mr. Bauer turned, his normally fair complexion ruddy with heat, and beads of perspiration dotting his upper lip. “No, but I know who you are. You’re Mr. Gabriel Rowe.”
“I am. I’m surprised—and flattered—that you know who I am.” Bauer inhaled noisily, and the corners of his broad mouth lifted in a smug grin. “I make it a point to be aware of who is attending these events. Although I believe I’ve seen you somewhere before. In London, perhaps?”
“It’s quite possible. I currently reside in London.”
“Ah, that is why you look so familiar then.” Bauer motioned for Gabriel to be seated at the table. “No doubt we’ve encountered each other at some point. Let’s sit. Devilishly hot today.”
Gabriel did as bid. “Perhaps at the Clancy Assembly Rooms. I believe I saw you there.”
Mr. Bauer’s brows lifted, as if he was pleased to have been recognized. “Ah yes. I’ve enjoyed a pleasant following there for most of the summer.” Bauer paused to accept a pewter tankard of beer from one of the footmen before returning his attention to Gabriel. “So, Mr. Rowe, my good friend Mr. Hawthorne informed me that you are in law.”
“I am. I work as a solicitor.”
“Fascinating. I’ve long been a proponent of utilizing the power of phrenology to deter or possibly detect crime. I’m glad you’re open to learning about how it might help you. But as a solicitor, do you not deal mostly in documents and paperwork? Or am I mistaken?”
Gabriel followed suit and accepted a tankard from the footman. “You’ll find a great deal is changing in law. I do oversee a significant amount of paperwork, but I also find that just because paperwork is in place, compliance is not guaranteed.”
“I see. So tell me, young man. What do you think so far? Do you find value in what I’m sharing?”
Gabriel chuckled. “I’m a skeptic, Mr. Bauer. Do not hold it against me.”
Mr. Bauer’s guttural laugh echoed from the canopy of tree branches overhead. “You’re hardly the first I’ve encountered, and I daresay you’re not the only one here. If anything, I consider it a challenge to change your mind. But if I may be so bold, I sense you don’t like me very much, or at least what I am teaching.”
“I don’t know you, Mr. Bauer,” Gabriel responded bluntly, “and if we all blindly accepted everything we heard, where would we be? Isn’t that the whole point of the symposium? To challenge new ideas?”
Bauer pointed a thick finger in Gabriel’s direction. “I’ve met men like you, Rowe. You’ve convinced yourself that you are aware of things that others aren’t. I’ve seen you watching, waiting. My suspicion is that you came here with your skepticism so firmly in place that you are waiting for the exact moment that will prove everything about phrenology to be false.”
Gabriel let the words simmer in the late-morning stillness.
Bauer’s deflection—an attempt to make Gabriel think he was wrong or irrational—would not gain purchase over him.
“Do you know what phrenology has taught me?” continued Bauer. “It’s taught me that people will be who they will be. We are all predisposed to a certain behavior pattern. It is fixed at the time of our birth. I suspect you are skeptical by nature, and unable to change it, you claim that skepticism is a positive trait. But I would challenge that the opposite is true. It keeps us from learning. Growing.”
Gabriel wanted to laugh. Bauer was trying to manipulate him. He’d not allow it. “I am interested in truth, Mr. Bauer. If there is truth to phrenology, then I’m happy to hear it. But there is something I must confess. I’m friends with Andrew Clancy, and he has expressed concerns on this topic. His footmen have shared reportsof certain phrenologists attempting to buy information about his patrons.”
The crimson color of Bauer’s face deepened. “I have neither the time nor the inclination for riddles. If there’s something you have to say, then let’s have it.”
Gabriel straightened and folded his arms over his chest. “I’m aware very wealthy people are in attendance here, and I’d hate to think that someone was attempting to take advantage of them.”
Bauer’s words seethed. “If I were you, Mr. Rowe, I’d be very careful about making assumptions, especially when you yourself are such an object of scrutiny. So if we are asking questions—nay, making accusations—would you like to hear the accusations about you? Why would a man such as yourself, of questionable employ and the member of a scandal-ridden family, return to such a place as Keatley Hall? You can pretend all you want that this weak argument is why you are here. But your real intent is clear as day to everyone. And it is pitiful.”
“Is it now?”
“A little friendly advice. You’ll make no friends by pretending to be here for phrenology when it’s clear you’re here to woo Miss Wilde and make Keatley Hall your own.”
“Ah, there you are!” Miss Sutton exclaimed as she swept into the White Parlor. “I’ve been looking high and low for you.”
Ella looked up from her reading, surprised by the interruption. “You’ve been looking for me?”
Miss Sutton stepped farther into the room, and as she did, the sunlight filtered through the windows and caught the folds ofher cranberry-hued gown, the deepness of which emphasized the chestnut color of her eyes. “Mrs. Chatterly told me that you’d returned from your walk with Mr. Abernathy, and I wanted to speak with you.”
